Pastor’s Reflection for April 9, 2017

This week begins Holy Week when we will recall the great events of our salvation. On Holy Thursday, we will celebrate the Last Supper where at the Passover meal, Jesus changed the bread and wine into His Body and Blood. He gave us His Flesh and Blood as food for our journey to the kingdom of heaven. As God fed the Hebrew people on their journey from the slavery of Egypt to the freedom of the Promised Land, so He now feeds us. The Lord commanded us to take and eat and to take and drink. Let us reflect on how we respond to such a great gift.

On Friday we commemorate in a special way, the death of the Lord. It is called Good Friday because the Lord saved us from eternal damnation by His death on the cross. As the Hebrew people put the blood of the lamb on their doorposts that saved them from the angel of death (Passover), so now the Blood of the Lamb (Jesus) saves us from eternal death. As we look at the cross, it is the school of love. Love is dying to oneself to serve the needs of the other. This is what Jesus did for us when He took upon Himself the penalty of our sins. On the cross, we see the great love that Jesus has for us.

Holy Week is a good time for us to make a good confession. It is the time when we place our sins on the cross and are washed clean by the Blood of Jesus. Our sins are forgiven and forgotten. Let this be the Easter gift that you give to yourself.Confession times are listed on page 5 of the bulletin.

On Easter, we celebrate the Resurrection of the Lord. Light overcomes darkness, life is stronger than death. Jesus wants all of us to have a Risen life, to be free from the slavery of sin and to live in peace, joy, and love.

I would encourage you to partake in the Holy Week liturgies. They will help you to pause and reflect on the events that brought us salvation. May all that we do bring us closer in our relationship with Jesus and help us to acknowledge the great love of God. He is a God of mercy and compassion. He loves us with an unconditional love. He is our good Shepherd, our Lord and Savior. Let us give Him more of our heart in response to His great love.

The collection on Easter will be for the health and retirement needs of our active and senior diocesan priests. I thank you in advance for your generosity.